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Area home prices and sales pace rose in May

The Kansas City area housing market remained positive in May, with average sales prices rising for new and existing homes and the pace of sales 1 percent above a year ago.

The average sales price of a new home in the area was $363,499 last month, 6 percent above May 2013, and the average existing home price was $183,121, 3 percent above a year ago, according to the Kansas City Regional Association of Realtors.

There were 2,863 existing homes sold last month, 1 percent ahead of last year. Sales of new homes were up 1 percent too, with 272 sold.

The inventory of existing homes dipped to 11,465 in May, down 3 percent from a year ago. A flurry of new home construction, however, increased that supply to 1,337, 32 percent more than May 2013.

Using a formula that divides the inventory by the sales pace, the association calculated there was a 5.3-month supply of existing homes, the low end of a balanced market, edging toward favoring sellers. There was a 6.3-month supply of new homes, a balanced market.

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